


War Path

by 1gay_sorceress



Category: Ancient Egyptian Religion, Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Norse Religion & Lore, Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Alternate Universe - Mythology, Betrayal, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F, Fights, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers to Enemies, Historical References, Humor, Politics, Slow Burn, Smut, Soulmates, Swearing, Wars, if i can make a slow burn lmao, pheala, trissefer
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:20:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23933707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/1gay_sorceress/pseuds/1gay_sorceress
Summary: Egypt is in dark times, when invaders come from all across the known world, new gods make their way into the land of the Pharaohs, taking war on another level, pantheons against pantheons. Philippa and Sheala, cross paths as war rages, an unlikely bond forming between two goddesses of different pantheons.
Relationships: Margarita Laux-Antille/Tissaia de Vries, Sheala de Tancarville/Philippa Eilhart, Triss Merigold/Yennefer z Vengerbergu | Yennefer of Vengerberg
Comments: 11
Kudos: 16





	1. Of invaders and tired Gods

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so for this fic I decided to rearange some of the myths to agree with the story. Isis for example, will not be married to Osiris and will not have Horus as her child. Instead it is Nephthys who is married to Osiris and is the mother of Horus. Some other myths will be different if the needs come, I will explain to you then, what changes. 
> 
> For the names, I decided to play with the secret names the gods have (at least in egyptian mythology) so that they can be interpreted by TW characters and it will also be easier to recognize which character is who. 
> 
> I will try to post one chapter every week, or every two weeks at least until my exams are done. Hope you will enjoy it, we're in for a long ride ! 
> 
> Gay-sorceress, out

_Blood splattering the sandy streets of Leontopolis, screams cut short by a claw to the throat, a frenetic dance amongst the corpses and soon to be dead humans. She heard a faint voice begging her to stop this massacre, but she did not listen, too far gone to stop, to enthralled by the taste and smell of human blood. Isn’t it what he had wanted? To make humans pay for their disobedience, defying a god was the highest of crimes after all, so why should she stop? When everything went quiet, only then did she rest for a moment, lapping the blood as the hungry lioness she was. The blood tasted… different, what… what was that… black, everything went black._

Philippa awoke from her dream, slowly opening her eyes to the sun and light wind that travelled across her room in the celestial palace. She stretched like a lioness on her enormous bed in the centre of the luxurious chamber made of white bricks, scriptures engraved walls, wide windows letting the wind and sun enter. Ever since that fateful day she had this dream, reminding her of a time where she lost all inhibition. And the time Thoth tricked her by making her drink this… delicious beverage, much more delicious than blood.

Thinking of beer, she turned her head and grabbed the jar that stood on the ground beside her bed, pouring the liquid in her cup… Or rather pouring nothing. She shook the jar, foolishly hopping to see the alcohol but nothing came. Yes, she was a goddess but unfortunately her power did not allow her to make alcohol magically appear. What a shame.

“For fuck...”

“What a colourful language so early in the morning.” a voice interrupted her. A voice she knew all too well. “Well, not so early, it is the middle of the day.” The voice said, with clear disdain in his voice and face probably too, the smell of alcohol was potent in the room. “Did you party again last night? I saw several women coming out of your room this morning.”

Philippa groaned and pushed herself on one elbow see the old man better, him and his long grey hair and beard.

“Why hello trickster, I hope, for your sake, that your disturbance comes with beer.” She did not bother to answer his question, it was rhetorical after all. The old man knew everything.

The old man sighed. “Really, it’s been millennia since you had your rampage and you’re still calling me that. You know I had to. And no, no mead for you. The Ennead has called for an assembly, that is why I am here, you drunk.”

No beer? How dreadful. “I am no drunk, old fool, I simply enjoy the taste of beer. Unless you want me to enjoy blood again?” His eyes tell her that he does not. “Is it the mighty Ra that sent you to fetch me? Well you can go back where you came from, probably your fucking library. I’m not going anywhere, especially not to see those pompous asses.”

“Don’t be a child, it is unbecoming of you.” She can hear the exasperation in his voice. That, she liked. 

Philippa stared at the man, unimpressed, then stood up from her bed and rearranged the light linen white robe she had, deciding not to change to more appropriate clothes.

“I’m not going.” She said firmly. “ _I’m_ going to look for some alcohol, now if you’ll excuse me.”

She shouldered past him, out in the corridor of the palace, but he stopped her, a hand on her shoulder, making her turn with a deadly stare. If he were not Thoth, he would certainly cower in fear.

“You are Sekhmet, Ra’s right hand, your presence is required, he won’t allow you to go feast while we are in the middle of a crisis.”

Philippa took a deep breath. Yes, she was Ra’s weapon, the punisher, not that she hated her title, she inspired fear and awe in the hearts of men, lust too, especially with women. But she hated being treated as if she was only of use to Ra as a simple weapon. She also knew Thoth did not like when someone called him by his original name, so she decided to annoy him some more. With a smirk she said, taunting:

“Well, I am so deeply sorry Ermion” she saw his jaw clench at the name “But if you don’t want me to go on another rampage, you’ll let me look for the precious beer. I could not care less about your crisis.”

She extracted herself from Ermion’s grip and continued her way.

“A certain Alexander the Great has come with an army.” Said Thoth, his voice ever so calm and poised.

She stopped on her tracks. Someone wanted to invade Egypt, again? The Persians invaded not too long ago and now this? How she missed the time when the Pharaohs did their job. She missed even more the time when the gods ruled the land, when it was Shu on the throne, then Geb and good old Osiris. Horus did a pretty good job too, considering the fact that his feud with Seth lasted eighty years. Oh, she did remember this one, entertaining times, those were. But then, the gods decided to let the mortals rule and retired in the celestial plane, what a mistake that was. Sure, receiving offerings and prayers were all good but the humans were weak, petty, and could not rule a country correctly, never learning the mistakes of their ancestors, she quite enjoyed watching them squirm from where she stood, utterly impressed by their stupidity. She remembered when Akhenaton sought to destroy them by making a new god, the prick. It didn’t end up well for the poor bastard, ha.

Philippa turned around, one hand on her hip, eyebrows raised.

“And why does that concern me? I warned you all when the Persians came the first time. I told you to let me wipe them out but no, we do not mingle amongst humans, we do not interfere anymore.” She said sarcastically and rubbed her forehead, a headache making its way to her brain, she always had one when speaking to Ermion, who stayed silent, watching her.

Quite frankly, she had enough of the gods. Thoth was really the only one she tolerated even if the old goat had tricked her a long time ago. Maybe Seth, he was fun to spar with, but the man did have a certain temper, as they all saw when he murdered his brother. Osiris was loved and was a good man but since he took place in the Underworld, she rarely saw him, she did miss him, especially his drinking.

After a moment of silent, Thoth spoke again. “The Persians were smart enough to let the Egyptians keep their gods, us, but this Alexander… We do not know what he is capable of. He could very well destroy our temples and bring a new pantheon. This is important, Philippa. And we need you.”

Philippa frowned and nodded. “Yes yes.” She raised her head, an ironic smile on her lips. “You do need me. But what I need more my dear Ermion, is beer.” And with those word, the goddess disappeared leaving an exasperated Thoth in the middle of the empty corridor.

“I swear, that woman.” He groaned, only her could make the god of wisdom lose his temper. Even when the Ennead could not decide between Horus and Seth for eighty fucking years, he did not lose his temper. He sighed and regained his composure. “Well, she probably has gone to the Underworld or the human plane. Either way, Ra will not be happy.”

* * *

Ra sat on his stone chair, at the end of the meeting table, impatiently drumming his fingers on the granit surface. He had summoned all the gods and yet, none of them were here, not yet at least. He already knew that Seth would not be coming, not while Horus would come. A childish reason for a god, but he could not say anything to enrage the desert king, or he would have yet another problem on his shoulders. Ripped from his thoughts by the door opening, Ra stared with his bright glowing green eyes at the new arrival. There stood his faithful friend, Ermion. Thoth, he reminded himself. Some of the gods preferred to be called by their original names like Philippa. Others not so much, as it reminded them of a time where they were weaker and without followers. Much darker times.

“Hello my friend. What news do you bring?” he said, his voice deep and old as he was.

Thoth sighed, looking exhausted, and sat on the chair to the right of the Sun God.

“Sekhmet… Philippa, will not come, I think she decided to see for herself who this Alexander was. And looking for alcohol too no doubt.”

Ra clenched his fist. “As I suspected. We are in a crisis and she does as she pleases. What must I do to make the gods behave as adults?” He massaged his temple with one hand, he felt like a father trying to control overexcited children, this god was too old to deal with this shit.

The great doors to the spacious meeting room opened again, Horus entered, lightly bowing, followed by Yennefer. When he saw the woman, his mood did not improve.

“Ra, it’s been a long time.” Said coldly Yennefer. Ra forced a smile.

“Indeed, Isis.”

He saw her eye twitch at the mention of her goddess name and took that as a small victory. Since she stole his powers a long time ago, leaving him weakened, the two had not been on friendly terms. But he knew this little victory was short-lived, so he decided to address Horus who took place beside Thoth.

“How has been your travel to the Underworld?”

Horus smiled lightly, he was always a gentle boy, but often succumbed to his emotions. “It was nice, Father was happy to see me as were the people.” His beautiful youthful face darkened. “It seems Apep has not caused much trouble during these past few months. I find that rather odd.”

Ra frowned. “Yes, it has been some time since I fought him. I am concerned. He must be preparing something.”

Thoth interrupted, ever so calm. “I am sure it is nothing grave. Let us enjoy this short peace for the moment.”

The doors opened again, quite violently this time. Entered Seth, surprisingly. Ra did not expect to see him, and the desert god did seem quite angered.

“The Greeks made their way to the Siwa Oasis.” He was positively fuming. “The priest claims Alexander is the son of Amon.”

Well, things just got complicated.

* * *

Philippa rummaged through the entire palace, not finding a drop of beer. Irritated, she decided to dress properly, putting on dark pants with leather sandals and a linen shirt. She threw her cape on her shoulders, covering her head with the hood before going towards the exit and entering the court of the palace. She marched until she saw the portal, far from the palace, that would bring her to the mortal plane. The golden aura of the portal glowed, bright as the sun that was already high in the sky, two guards were standing at each side of the paved road that the goddess had taken. Philippa recognized them as Anubis’ soldiers, their jackal heads black, teeth bared, and spear firmly planted into the ground.

“Who goes there ?!” ask the one on the right with a deep voice. Philippa scoffed.

“Don’t you recognize your goddess?” she asked with a dangerous edge to her voice. The other jackal suddenly shrunk on himself while the one who had spoken deeply bowed, head down.

“Forgive me, my lady. What brings you here?”

She sniffled, haughtily looking at the bowed jackal, not paying attention to the other. He was probably new, or he would not piss himself like that.

“I wish to travel to the mortal plane. And yes”, interrupting before the bowing jackal could say something “I know it is not authorized, but do I give a single shit? No, I do not. So, let me pass and you will keep your balls.”

The jackal swallowed. “But…” he cleared his throat trying to regain some sort of composure “Anubis asked us to guard the portal. Especially against you.”

Philippa sighed and stood in front of the jackal, signalling him to rise. He did, reluctantly, but did not look the goddess in the eye. 

“Do not worry.” She said with a sickeningly sweet voice and raised her hand lightly caressing the cheek of the jackal “Anubis will not know, because you won’t be here to tell him.”

Before he could say something, Philippa, claws out, ripped the throat of the poor jackal, letting his corpse fall on the ground. Soon, the corpse disappeared, golden lights flying in the air, bringing the soul of the fallen jackal to the Underworld. A gasp made Philippa look up, to see the other guard, ass on the ground and shaking like a lost puppy. She stepped slowly towards him and kneeled to be at his height. She leaned until her lips were beside his long ear, breath tickling his skin. He couldn’t move, he was frozen to the ground.

Oh, he had heard of Sekhmet The Powerful, merciless, hauntingly beautiful and savage. When she came to them minutes ago, his heart made a jump in his chest, seeing the lustrous black hair arranged in a braid that fell on her right shoulder, her golden eyes and bronzed skin made his mouth water. Then he remembered who she was and what she had done, and fear overtook his senses. She was feared across Egypt, but revered just as much, and she could do much. And he was new, true, he had never laid eyes upon a god or a goddess and of course, the first he saw was the Lady of Carnage, couldn’t it have been Nephthys?!

“I won’t kill you, new one.” He sighed in relief “Only if you promise me not to tell a soul about what you saw.” He gulped and looked at where his friend stood, now gone. “He is not dead, well not quite. He joined the Douat, like before Anubis took him as his guard. But you wouldn’t want to abandon your new position so soon, no? It is a great honour to be one of Anubis’ soldier after all.” her voice was so cold and at the same time as hot as the desert where Seth ruled, ready to burn him to death.

“N-no…”

“Good. So, what do we say?” she asks, now looking at him with a fake smile and golden eyes full of murderous intent.

“I… I won’t tell anybody. I swear, my Lady, I won’t.” Oh no, he certainly wouldn’t, he was not a fool.

Philippa patted his cheek. “Good boy.” She stood and put her hood back on as she marched through the golden portal to disappear mere seconds after entering the golden glow.

The jackal let his back fall on the ground, sighing in relief, legs still shaking while Philippa appeared in the mortal realm, on the outside of the city of Memphis. She looked around; the portal having converted her normally non-human size to that of a mortal. The golden glow of her eyes was dimmed to normal looking ambers. She sagged.

“Goodness… I forgot how hot it was in this realm.”

The goddess approached the city, looking around her. People were conducting their business, seemingly unaware of the Greek menace in the country. The news had not reached the Persians and Egyptians present in the city. Good, that meant she can go have a drink without being bothered by soldiers fighting like mad dogs. She entered the beautiful city, admiring her surroundings, it had been quite some time since she had not visited. Not since Kheops’ reign that is, so a few centuries.

“Now to get some beer.” She smiled, one of her dangerous smiles, darkened by her hood and making the people that passed by her uncomfortable. “And then to see this… Alexander.”


	2. Fateful meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In a nutshell, Tissaia finds Philippa in a brothel, the gods are in deep shit and cannot seem to act like adults, Yennefer threatens to hang men by their balls, Philippa fucks off to meet Alexander but stops her journey because of a goergeous woman who talks to animals.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote in the first chapter that what Philippa drank was mead. However I corrected it with beer since mead is a beverage that came much later than what the egyptians drank. Beer was what egyptians used to make and drink, and it is what the god Thoth used to trick Sekhmet as well.

Philippa found a tavern in the middle of the crowded streets of Memphis. She was dodging bodies, and all sorts of animals. Apparently, she arrived in the town in time for the procession of Apis, seeing as the priests marched with the shrine a street farther from where she stood. Well, the goddess was not here for that, she was here for something much more entertaining. She entered the tavern and… correction, the brothel. She clicked her tongue, this will have to do, after all what kind of brothel didn’t have beer. Philippa looked around and she saw Persians with Egyptian girls getting it on in the middle of the room as if there weren’t any bed for that kind of things upstairs.

“Ugh.” Philippa passed by the party, seemingly disgusted. Not by the girls, never the girls, she just couldn’t stand the smell of sweaty men.

The goddess leaned her back on one the walls and let her hood down signing to a servant to come to her. He was a young man, Egyptian, wearing a typical white apron with a belt at the waist and when he saw her, he stared a little too long for her taste. 

“What are you waiting for boy? Bring me some beer. Or do you not serve that?”

He snapped out of his trance and bowed, apologizing before scurrying off. A minute later he came back with a cup and a jar full of beer which made Philippa’s mouth water. She inhaled the rich smell of the alcohol while the boy poured her some beer. He gave her the cup and turned back but Philippa stopped him.

“Leave the jar.”

She produced a golden coin in the palm of her hand, then threw it to the boy. He was barely able to catch it and when he did, he looked at the gold, his eyes widening. He placed the jar on the ground beside Philippa and thanked her.

“Make sure to hide that. You wouldn’t want the Persians to notice it.”

He bowed again “Yes, thank you my lady, may Ra bless you.” This time he left and returned to serve other customers.

Philippa scoffed and took a sip of beer, licking her lips when the amber coloured liquid touched her tongue. Ra would certainly not bless her, but the beer was worth it. She took a few more sips, observing mortals making out and whores trying to get the attention of customers, nearly fighting each other for the most promising one. Philippa frowned, it really was full of Persians, disgusting, filthy, Persians. They may respect some of their ways, but they certainly made sure everyone knew who ruled here now. She saw it when she first entered the town, the goddess saw them beating up Egyptians, stealing from them and other things she did not want to think about. Maybe the Greeks would be a welcome change. A feminine voice coming from next to her ripped the goddess from her thoughts.

“Hm. I think I met you before.”

Without looking, Philippa answered, bored and distracted by a woman with her cleavage popping out of her modest gown. “You must be mistak-” she slowly turned her head and indeed they had met. “Oh shit.”

She quickly drank the rest of the beer and made for the exit before a hand latched at her cape.

“Where do you think you’re going, Philippa?”

Philippa forced a smile and gulped, before turning around, setting her eyes on an older woman with dark-brown hair tied up in a bun, and wise brown eyes, Philippa had several centimeters on the woman, but she couldn’t help feeling small. The woman was better dressed than most mortals present here. Of course, that wasn’t a difficult task to accomplish.

“Tissaia…” Philippa drawled out, taking the jar that was on the ground in hand, raising it as if to toast. “What a surprise.”

Tissaia snatched the jar from her hands when she was about to take a large gulp. Philippa glared at her and sighed, scowling like a child would when their favourite toy was taken away.

“Indeed, care to explain what you are doing on the mortal plane?”

Philippa raised her eyebrows, offended. “Care to explain what _you_ are doing here.”

Tissaia gazed at her with an unimpressed stare. “I can do very well what I please.”

“So do I.” she challenged.

“No, you cannot. Unlike me, you are expected to fill your duties, when the Ennead calls, you ought to be present.”

Philippa rolled her eyes so far, she swore she saw two mortals fucking upside-down.

“Yes yes, of course, I forgot that the great goddess Neith was above all of us and did not bother to attend anymore. Foolish of me to think I was obligated to do something even the mother of Ra did not do. Is it him that sends you? He is getting clingy.”

Tissaia wore a tight smile on her face. “Very foolish, yes. And no, he did not send me, I do not get sent. I just sensed your presence. I am here to gather information about these… Greeks. And what do I find? You, in a brothel.”

Philippa let out a pained groan. “This is absolutely not what it looks like. I was looking for beer.”

“As always.”

“And I planned on seeing this Alex.” The goddess added.

Tissaia looked up at her, confused. “You mean, Alexander?”

“Yes, but Alex is shorter and easier.”

The older woman scoffed. “For a head full of alcohol, I’m sure.”

“Oh come on, I only had one cup.” Whined Philippa.

“Semantics my dear. Now, I do not enjoy brothel as much as you do so I’ll go straight to the point.” This time Philippa decided to listen closely, when Tissaia spoke to you about something important, it was better to take it seriously. “New gods are coming this way. Unknown gods coming from Greece, not unlike Yam.”

Oh, Yam. This mysterious god of the sea who came and fucked everything up for the Ennead. A hint of recognition passed through the amber eyes of Philippa.

Tissaia hummed. “I see you have not forgotten. Well, this Alexander the Great, I heard he is quite the conqueror, a Macedonian, actually. He conquered Greece then Persia, and he fully intends on doing the same to Egypt, no doubt posing as the hero who freed the poor Egyptians from the Persians.”

“I could have dealt with the Persians a long time ago if the Ennead wasn’t so stuck up on rules.” Muttered Philippa.

“I am sure you would have.” Tissaia indulged Philippa like a mother would a child to shut him up, irritating Philippa more than she already was. “Anyway, during my inquiries I learned that he brought his army to the Siwa Oasis, to see the oracle of Amon, losing half his army in the process of crossing the desert.”

“Ha, idiot. I’m surprised Seth didn’t send a sandstorm their way.”

A hint of mirth made its way in the eyes of the older goddess. “Hm, it would have made things easier.”

“So…” After a moment of silence, Philippa leaned on the wall with her shoulder, staring intently at Tissaia. “If he went to Siwa to see the oracle… do you think he intends to declare himself as a Pharaoh?”

Tissaia sighed, her eyes darkening. “That is what I fear. Plus, I heard some names, of their gods, when I flew above their army. They were praying to them.” Philippa’s eyes widened, so there were new gods in the country. “A certain Zeus.”

“Only that?”

“They talked about a Hades, an Athena and… what was her name?” Tissaia pondered, searching for the name and snapped her fingers when it came back to her. “Oh yes, Artemis.”

Philippa rubbed her chin, deep in thoughts. “Interesting.” She snatched the jar from Tissaia and before the older woman could do something, she drank the whole thing, earning a disapproving glare. “What? I have a long journey ahead of me, Siwa is not just a few meters away you know.”

“Fine. If you want so badly to see the little twat, I suggest you present yourself in your true form and not this one, unless you want to end up executed for impertinence towards their loved king.”

Philippa waved her hand dismissively. “Yes yes, Ô wise one.”

She took her leave as Tissaia told her one last thing, eyes serious. “Be careful Phil, we don’t know what awaits us.”

Philippa nodded and left the brothel. “A shitload of problems, I’m sure.”

When she passed the alleyway between the tavern and another house, she saw the servant from before, getting beaten up by Persian soldiers. She stopped and watched, frowning until she saw one of the soldiers take the golden coin she had given the young boy and she sighed.

“I told you to be careful, stupid boy.” The goddess continued her march, sombre expression on her face. _We do not meddle in human affairs, you did that to him._

As she approached the gates of the city, she heard a man telling stories to children. Normally she wouldn’t pay much attention to it, but she stopped in her tracks when she heard her name. A storyteller relating to children the story of Sekhmet.

“Well children, have you heard the tale of…” dramatically he extended his arm. “Sekhmet, the Powerful.”

The children squealed and some raised their hands to speak. She decided to listen, to hear again, after so many years, how the mortals told her story. She stepped towards the little gathering and sat on the ground behind the children who listened to the storyteller excitedly, not paying much attention to the things happening beside them, but the storyteller greeted her with a nod and so she returned it. One child didn’t bother waiting for the authorisation to speak, a young Egyptian boy, not more than six.

“She’s the best warrior in the whole world!” At that Philippa couldn’t help it and a smug smile crept on her face.

Another one, a girl, spoke up. “She killed a lot of people.” Heh, true.

A cacophony of sound came out of the children’s mouth, making Philippa cringe, and not letting the storyteller continue with his tale. He clapped his hands, regaining the attention of the little demons. Gods, she couldn’t stand children.

“Yes yes, and that is exactly the tale I will tell today.” He took a scary voice, leaning towards the children. “When Ra punished us for our rebellion.”

Philippa swallowed, of course he would tell this story. This event had forged her reputation through time. She decided to let him tell the tale, reminiscing in old memories.

“One day, the people had enough of the rule of Ra. They thought him as arrogant and selfish.” And rightly so. “They decided to rise against the Sun God. Not happy with this turn of event, Ra whose eye could see all, took it upon himself to stop this rebellion. He tore his all-seeing eye out” The children gasped, some covering their mouth, other giggling, seemingly excited by the horror of a god tearing his eye out. “The eye took the appearance of his daughter Sekhmet, woman with the head of a lioness, beautiful and Ô so very powerful.”

What kind of bullshit was that? Ra never tore his eye out and she certainly wasn’t an eye before. No, Ra adopted her when they were not yet worshipped, some… Thousands of years ago. He sent her that day, on earth, by summoning her, not by transforming his eye, what the… Philippa snorted and placed her chin on her palm, elbow resting on her thigh, humans were so quick to tell melodramatic stories that made absolutely no sense and she wondered where this imagination came from.

“He told her to make the humans pay for their sacrilege” continued the storyteller, not bothered one bit by Philippa’s interruption. “And so she did, she was Ra’s perfect weapon, polished and deadly. Sekhmet descended on the mortal plane and took the form of a gigantic lioness, tearing through the angry mob who wanted to take arms against the all-mighty Ra. She tore and tore, flesh and blood spilling everywhere she was going. None survived her wrath.”

Hm, was it really a good story to tell children? She looked at the little people, they were less disturbed than she imagined they would, their eyes were wide and shining with excitement. _Weird little creatures._

“But Ra didn’t expect Sekhmet to go that far, he couldn’t stop her for she had tasted the most delicious beverage: blood. The massacre lasted weeks, months even, soon, no humans would be left standing. Ra begged the lioness to stop, but she wouldn’t listen, too far gone.”

Philippa had to give credit to the storyteller, he knew how to get an audience going, they were not alone anymore, people gathered to hear the tale of Sekhmet, some listening in awe, others in fear of this dark event that occurred thousands of years ago.

“Ra, desperate to stop this, decided to call Thoth, the wise one.” The little bitch more like. “The god of wisdom had concocted a masterful plan to stop Sekhmet before she killed more humans. He descended on Earth and laced hematite with beer, to give the beverage the colour of blood so that it would entice the goddess to drink it. Thoth found the lioness, lapping blood off the ground and approached cautiously.”

The beginning of her love for beer. _Ermion,_ _you marvellous little cunt._

“He said: “Ô powerful one, won’t you drink from this jar instead of the ground, it is not becoming of a goddess of your stature!”” Everyone was listening, waiting in batted breath. “The lioness looked up at the Ibis and smelled the jar, inspecting it. “Pour it in my mouth” she said. And so, Thoth did. “Exquisite” the lioness purred, “Give me more” and so he did. Soon after, Sekhmet, drunk on beer, passed out and humanity was saved. Ra who had almost doomed mankind, became their saviour, restoring his reputation.”

Philippa scoffed, Ermion certainly didn’t pour it in her mouth as she demanded. The bastard had almost made her choke on it.

“Since then, we worship Sekhmet the Powerful, offering her all sorts of alcohol, planting vineyards in Imaou in order to appease her never-ending wrath.”

As he finished the story, everyone applauded and cheered. Philippa stood up and dusted her clothes. Well, apart from some details, the story lived up to the actual event. She put her hood back on and stopped as she felt eyes on her. The storyteller didn’t look away from her and that is when she realised, he was blind, his eyes never quite focusing anywhere. He extended a hand towards her as the crowd dispersed. She approached him and without hesitation, the man took the goddess’ hands in his, startling her a bit.

“I am not worthy of your presence, Ô Powerful one.” How the hell. “I am deeply honoured that you listened to my tale, I hope I told it right.”

Well, she was discovered, how, she didn’t know, after all there were strange humans roaming the world. Very strange humans. Like those little creatures who liked gory details.

“It was a good story.” She traced his forehead with her thumb, a sign of protection she decided to give to him since he recognized her, making the storyteller shake with emotions. “Go with my blessing, mortal.” He bowed deeply from where he sat, tears escaping his eyes.

Philippa threw him one last glance and finally left the great city of Memphis. Once she was far enough from the city, leaving the path of the black sphinxes, away from staring eyes, she took the form of a lioness. Her pelt was darker than normal lions. With a kick of her hind-legs, the goddess took off on the warm sand heated by the burning sun, towards Siwa where she will be in just a day.

* * *

Ermion gazed upon the Ennead, almost everyone was seated at the granite table in the centre of the council room. His eyes passed on Yennefer, seated at the left of Ra, her eyes expressionless and cold. Right next to her was Seth. Horus, who was seated just beside the god of wisdom, glared daggers at Seth who did the same and Nephthys sighed, exasperated by the antics of her son and the sand god. Anubis was at the other end of the table, a small gentle smile playing on his lips.

“I see Sobek and Neith won’t join us.” Spoke Ra next to him. “Well, shall we begin?”

“Yes.” Spoke firmly Seth, apparently intending to speak his mind first. “When the Greeks marched through the desert, I could have wiped them out, Ra. Why didn’t you let me?!”

Horus scoffed and Seth immediately turned his head towards the young god. “You have something to say, Radovid?”

The blue eyes of the boy were mocking as he stared at Seth. “Well, Eredin. You seem to only resolve problems with violence. Maybe that is why Ra decided not to let you do your thing. The Greeks could be a good change for Egypt.” He let his head rest against is hand. “You’re hardly useful without sandstorms, I wonder why you are here.”

Eredin clenched his fists and stood up, his chair clattering on the ground as he threw himself on the table, ready to strangle Radovid who barely moved, a smug smile on his face. His statement was confirmed. An invisible force threw Eredin back on his chair and locked him in place, sealing his lips at the same time. His enraged eyes pierced holes in the head of Yennefer letting her know that her interruption not appreciated.

“Enough with childish games.” Said the witch-goddess. “We are in a crisis, there is no time to fight amongst ourselves.” 

Ra nodded. “Indeed, for once I agree with Isis.”

Yennefer clicked her tongue. “Will you stop calling me that?”

Ra raised his eyebrows, looking falsely innocent. “Why? It is your goddess name, why should I call you something else?”

He knew why, the bastard. A storm raged in the violet eyes of the goddess and she said with a heated voice:

“No, it is the name the mortals gave us, it is not my name. I am not Isis, I am Yennefer.” She turned her head and looked at each member of the assembly. “And I know I’m not the only one who prefers my real name to my given name. Isn’t that right Regis?”

Still with a smile on his lips, Anubis decided to back up her old friend. “Rightly so my friend. But as you said, there is no need to fight amongst ourselves. I’m sure Ra will call us what we want, and not what he wants.” As he said that, his eyes opened, chilling dark eyes watching Ra’s.

Before mankind walked this earth, they were on Earth, the First Civilization. Not only them, other gods now in other Nations, were here too. At that time, they had their names, like everybody else would on the mortal plane. But when humans came and looked upon their gods, they decided to give them names because no god would tell them what their true name was. And so, Regis became Anubis, as Yennefer became Isis and Eredin became Seth. Ra sighed and complied.

“I apologize. Regis is right, let us put our quarrel behind us and speak of what is coming.”

Yennefer scoffed, but said nothing more as she threw a thankful nod towards Regis who smiled in return. Ermion cleared his throat, gaining the attention of the assembly. The god of wisdom had a hard time remaining serious, his eyes landing on a tied up and highly annoyed Eredin. 

“Hum. Please, Yennefer, would you free him. I cannot concentrate when he is looking at me like an angry puppy.” Eredin let out an offended huff.

Radovid laughed, choking when Nephthys elbowed him in the ribs. 

“Of course. But as soon as he tries something stupid, he will end up hanging from the ceiling by his balls.”

Ra groaned letting his head fall on his hands, it always ended up like this. Yennefer snapped her fingers and Eredin was free. It was clear that he wanted to say something but the glare the witch-goddess sent him made him shut up.

“Thank you very much. Now that I have your undivided attention, something of great importance has come up.” Ermion took a scroll out of his gown and unrolled it. “This” he said showing the scroll for everyone to see “is a prophecy that appeared this morning in the Infinite Library. It is… quite unsettling.”

“Read it to us, if you please.” Said Ra, urgently.

The Infinite Library was full of prophecies and it was one Ermion’s job to sort them out. Ra knew that if his friend took the matter to the Ennead, it meant the prophecy was serious.

“Of course.” Ermion cleared his throat once more and began to read the hieroglyphs. “As the sun sets never to rise again, war wages in the sky. New gods will rise as old ones will die. Nations will burn, other prosper. In the turmoil of all, the huntress hunts the lioness, and the lioness hunts the huntress, forever bound by fate to subdue the traitorous snake.”

The assembly sat in an oppressed silence, as dread made its way to the hearts of the gods. Finally, Eredin broke the silence.

“I thought prophecies came in rhymes…” he muttered.

For this comment he received an exasperate stare from Yennefer and he shrugged.

“Gods against gods…” said Radovid, deep in his thoughts. “Could this be because of the arrival of the Greeks?”

“It could mean this, and it could mean that it’s only the beginning.” Spoke Ra. “Through time, mortal beliefs changed, as we saw with Akhenaton. Other gods, other tribes could rise, not only the Greeks. Even then, the Greeks are an old nation, I assume their gods are hardly new.”

Yennefer looked at Ra. “Meaning another threat lies in the future, larger than Alexander. We cannot stop it without knowing what it is.”

“Indeed.” Said Regis. “But what troubles me is this thing about a lioness hunting a huntress.”

Drumming her fingers on her armchair, Nephthys finally decided to chip in, she was always the silent one, never speaking if it was not necessary.

“Well, I know only one lioness who likes to hunt women.”

Yennefer let out a loud laugh, unlike herself, earning a few surprised glares. She cleared her throat and returned to her composed self.

“Pardon me. It’s just… Edwige is right, it can only be Philippa.”

“But who could be the huntress?” wondered Radovid.

Ermion sat on his chair and crossed his arms. “It could very well be a goddess from another pantheon, and bounded by fate… It is possible we are talking about something similar to soulmates.”

“Philippa with a soulmate?” scoffed Yennefer. “Oh please, she wouldn’t give up on humping every woman she sees for a soulmate.”

Ra banged his fist on the table, making the assembly jump a little, not expecting such anger from the Sun God.

“I won’t allow this. No one in this pantheon will mingle with the enemy.” His voice was shaking with rage.

Ermion tried to calm the old god. “It is not unheard of; soulmates are not a rare sight amongst gods, it could be good for both of the pantheons. They do not have to be our enemies.”

“This meeting is adjourned.” Ermion was cut short by the icy voice of his friend. “Eredin, find me Philippa, immediately.”

“What? Why me?”

Yennefer interrupted them. “I’ll find Philippa. I’m sure our dear Eredin has other matters to attend to.”

“Like raising a sandstorm.” Mocked Radovid.

Eredin glared at him and the young god raised his hands in mock surrender. Ra stared at the witch-goddess before conceding.

“Fine. Bring her to me once you find her.”

“Of course.” She evidently would not. At least not yet.

On that note, Yennefer got up and left, soon followed by the other gods. Ra sagged on his chair, looking defeated and he addressed Ermion before he left.

“Dark times are upon us.”

Ermion sighed. “I am afraid so my friend. But let us not lose hope just yet.”

* * *

As Philippa neared the Fayoum Oasis, she decided it was time to rest a little, the heat was dreadful and she needed a drink that was not alcohol. She noticed a large batch of palm trees, not too far from the lake Moeris, a one-meter large stream of water descending towards the said lake. The goddess, still in her lioness form, approached, feeling thirsty but froze. What she saw was… breath-taking. In the middle of the little oasis, a woman, clad in a blue toga with knee-high leather sandals, was soaking in the stream. She noticed a bow and arrows on the ground but what surprised her was the animals that fawned over the woman.

Birds of all kinds, gazelles and little rodents circling her while she gave each one her attention. Her face was peaceful, her green eyes were shining with mirth, her hair was black and cut short just below the ears. The shadows of the palm trees played against her creamy white skin and Philippa was bewitched. It is true, Philippa loved women, of all kinds really, but never had someone taken her breath away, it was quite difficult to have that sort of effect on the goddess. And yet, this woman managed it in mere seconds.

 _She is not a simple human._ No human would have such attention from animals, no human would be this… beautiful. The goddess approached, until her paws were on the green grass of the small oasis, her body welcoming the shadow of the trees. At the unknown sound, the animals looked up and then fled when they saw the lioness. But the stranger was not bothered, not even when her intelligent eyes gazed upon the lioness. No, instead she smiled, an enigmatic yet gorgeous smile. _Oh get a hold of yourself, woman._ Normally she would never approach a human in this form, and even if she would, they’d run away with their tail between their legs.

“You are not a simple human.” She dared to speak, but the woman remained calm, no traces of surprise on her face as the lioness spoke, only confirming to Philippa that she was no human.

Her smile widened, and she spoke. “Indeed not. And you are no simple lioness.”

What a soft voice she had, so very smooth and with a strong accent, from where, the goddess could not quite say. At that statement, if Philippa could smirk, she would.

“Indeed not.” She began to circle the woman as if stalking a prey. “Who are you then? I have never seen someone be so free in the presence of wild animals. Nor have I seen a human be so calm when faced with a lion. And I have seen many things.”

The eyes of the woman never left Philippa’s. “I am travelling, since I came with the Greeks, I took the opportunity to visit this beautiful land. Wouldn’t you do the same were you in my place?”

So this was where her accent came from. Philippa did not let the news of the Greeks affect her. Instead she sat in front of the woman who had still her legs in the water, and lapped at the crystal liquid, enjoying the cooling effect it had on her body. The woman watched her, her smile never fading, and Philippa couldn’t tell what she was thinking. _Definitely not human._

“The Greeks you said?” asked Philippa, ignoring the previous question. “Strangers tend to make a habit of invading this land.”

The mysterious woman chuckled. “Isn’t that what humans do? Invade and take what they think as beautiful?”

“Like petty children.” Philippa added.

Amusement danced in the eyes of the woman, as it did in Philippa’s. “May I know your name, beautiful lioness?”

 _Beautiful, huh? She is not shy._ Philippa stepped a little closer to her, paws soaking in the water, until her muzzle was centimeters away from the nose of the woman, her breath tickling the stranger, displacing some wild locks of hair.

“Only if I may have yours.” she said with a low voice.

A calloused hand, from wielding a bow no doubt, caressed her pelt and she controlled herself not to purr like a kitten. They were looking each other in the eye, searching for something, not quite sure what.

“My name…” said the woman with a husky voice “Is Sheala.”

Satisfied, Philippa changed back into her human form, her covered legs soaking in the water making her clothes cling onto her skin, knees scraping against the stones littered across the stream bed, but she didn’t care. The hand that caressed her pelt was now against her cheek, and for the first time she saw the enigmatic eyes widen in awe.

“It is nice to meet you, Sheala.” She saw the woman shudder. “I am Philippa.”


	3. Even gods can be killed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As war begins, a much bigger threat looms on the horizon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You must know that I can't help imagining a better relationship between Radovid and Philippa. So my Radovid is reaaaally OOC 
> 
> That's all, enjoy folks!

Sheala and Philippa had talked until night fell in the sky, never revealing who they really were, just content to let their role behind them for a little while. Philippa surprised herself in liking the other woman’s company, yearning for more after she left the tiny oasis where they had spent the afternoon. She bid her farewell, promising that someday, they will see each other again. After that the lion goddess took off towards the Siwa Oasis, not stopping for another break since she was late, later than she thought she would be. Never had a woman kept Philippa’s attention more than a few hours and yet she had spent the whole day with this stranger without feeling bored. Soon, Philippa had to return to the celestial plane, to the Golden City. But first, she needed to see Alexander the Great, she needed to know what he was doing here, what he wanted and what was his purpose.

But when she was at the outskirt of the Siwa Oasis, her whole body was taken by dread, coming from deep within her guts. Something was wrong. She looked at the Greek army stationed outside the Oasis, but they seemed to get along with the Egyptians who brought them food and water. Then what was it? The goddess looked up in the sky, the sun already low and her eyes were attracted by a strange light. A greenish, abnormal light. She couldn’t pinpoint the exact location but she suspected that it came from the fields of Aaru, Osiris’ domain. Old man Vizimir was under attack.

Philippa felt a tickle at the back of her head, signalling that one of the gods tried to reach her.

_Ph… Can you h…_

Interferences, great, just great. It meant she was too far from the one who tried to contact her. She felt the reach of the other person extend and she knew then that the only one capable of that was Yennefer. No other god could extend their telepathic reach in the span of a second.

_Philippa! Phil! You need to come back immediately! The fields are under attack!_

Yennefer’s voice was frantic, and she could hear her breath catch like she was battling.

_What is happening?_

A groan. _While you were enjoying your afternoon in the mortal plane, the army of a god named Ares attacked the fields, a surprise attack, no one was expecting this, we were not prepared. Countless souls have already been ripped to shreds and sent to Ammit. Osiris is fighting alongside Eredin and Radovid, but Regis’ men are not responding, nor are the other gods. I don’t know how much we can keep on fighting like this._

_Bring me back. Bring me back right now, force a portal to open. Hurry Yen, I will crush them._

A shimmering golden light appeared in the sky as soon as she said the words, and soon a ray of sunlight hit her, dispersing the sand she was on, creating a tornado. Mere seconds later, the goddess disappeared at the same time as the light, leaving no trace behind, calm returning in the desert. Philippa surfaced in the fields of Aaru, once a peaceful haven for those who lead a good life, full of light and joy, now a pit of despair, burning as warriors in armours she had never seen before, tore through them. Screams erupted from each corner of Osiris’ domain as souls were sent somewhere they didn’t belong. Ammit must be having a feast.

She saw Eredin manipulate his sand, burying hundreds of men but they kept on coming. Osiris summoned the demons from the Duat to fight alongside them but no matter the number of their ranks, the enemies grew larger and larger. She saw Radovid battling to protect the poor souls, sending rays of light after rays of light, obliterating any warrior who came near him.

Philippa summoned her khopesh, the blade was enflamed, and the more anger she felt, the more the blade burned. An anger akin to the time she slaughtered countless of people. She turned her head to see Yennefer raising an enormous pit of fire in front of her, burning the mass of soldiers coming her way. Philippa allowed herself a small smile; her sister had not weakened in their many years of peace.

“Glad you abandoned your beer to join us, dear sister.” Yelled Yennefer so she could be heard above the cacophony of blades clashing and screams.

A predator smile graced the features of the lion goddess, revealing her fangs. “I wouldn’t miss it. Say, where the fuck are the others?!”

With a swift slash of her blade, a crescent moon of fire tore through the army of celestial warriors like it was nothing, reducing them to ashes. She won’t lie, she had missed the thrill of battle. She wasn’t meant for peace, never was.

“I don’t know! Ra is not responding, neither is Ermion. We’re the only ones here. Sobek is busy sending his children to drown Greek boats in the mortal plane.” Yennefer groaned when a man as big as a mountain crashed his blade against the golden arm bands on the witch-goddess’ arms. She tried to withstand the brute force, but she was wavering.

With the speed of light, Philippa appeared behind the giant man and cut his head off before he could notice her presence. Yennefer send a grateful smile at her sister and rose to her feet, catching her breath. Chaos was everywhere, corpses littering the fields, and not a single moment of rest was allowed. The ground shook, making the two goddesses fall to their knees.

“What the…”

A scream of agony pierced their ears and when they turned their heads a horrifying scene took place before their eyes. A man… no. A god judging by his height and shining black armour that distinguished him from the masses. Philippa saw his glassy blue eyes burning with intensity and then she saw his blade held high up in the sky supporting the body of Radovid. The young god’s abdomen was pierced by the blade, his body resting on the pommel, blood trickling down the smiling Greek god. The sword had dark aura surrounding it, an aura of pestilence who made the body of Horus wither until all life was taken away from him, his once golden skin now ashen, crackled and fell away.

“That’s one god less on your side, Egyptians!” Yelled the god with a gruff voice. “My name is Ares, and I am here to crush you.” The bastard laughed out loud while announcing himself.

Philippa was still in shock, as was Yennefer, but the scream of rage that escaped Osiris throat upon seeing his son die brought them back to reality. Ares waved his sword and send the body of Horus flying until it landed right in front of her. She heard the clash of Osiris’ heka sceptre and the Greek god’s sword, but she only saw the dead and dry body of Radovid.

“Phil…” her eyes were fixated on him; she couldn’t look away. “Phil! More of them are coming!”

She did not listen; with a shaky hand she touched the crumbling cheek of the young god, his cheeks were hollowed, and his bright blue eyes were dulled. The young boy who she had trained, who was petulant and borderline stupid, the boy who had a heart of gold, the spoiled-rotten arrogant boy who she helped raise. Memories played in her mind.

_“One day, I’m going to be as loved by the people as my father is!”_

_“Oh yeah? I don’t know how a little shrimp like you could manage that.”_

_The child looked up at her, scowling, raising his wooden sword towards her and taking a heroic stance, puffing his chest out._

_“You’ll see, auntie Phil. You’ll see. And when I am, you won’t have to fight anymore, you can finally rest and have all the women and beer you want! I promise!”_

_Philippa chuckled, crossing her arms, a brow raised. “And where did you learn that I liked women?”_

_Radovid looked at her, confused as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the world. “How? I see them leaving your room every morning before we practice.”_

_Of course he did._

_A small smile played on the lips of the goddess. “Ah yes, of course. I will hold you to that promise, little prince. But first you must beat me in a match so I’m afraid I won’t see this dream come true.”_

_“Ha! Soon enough my lady, you will be defeated!” he said, with all the assurance a child of his age could have, before rushing to her, sword first._

“You didn’t fulfil your promise, little prince.” Philippa said blankly.

Yennefer could only watch the display, trying to reason with her sister was a lost cause now. Philippa rose to her feet and strode over the body of Radovid, her face betraying no emotion, eyes fixated on the fierce fight between Osiris and Ares. A fight between a mourning father and a sadistic bastard.

The goddess watched as countless soldiers ran to her, jumping from the green portal that probably brought them here, ready to impale her, and only walked slowly towards the mass, alone against thousands of opponents. Yennefer stared at the ground beneath Philippa’s feet and noticed that the plants were dying at each step she took. The lion goddess’ body emanated the same pestilence Ares’ sword did. She knew then that the invaders were doomed. The witch-goddess also knew that using this power would take a lot out of Philippa. In that moment she was no longer Philippa, she was Sekhmet, scourge of mankind.

Sekhmet raised her arms in front of her, sending a wave of pestilence towards the army, not letting one escape alive. They all fell, choking on the miasma, screaming in agony as their skin fell from their bodies and their eyes were liquified. It was only then that the fight between the two gods stopped, Osiris staring in shock as her fellow comrade went berserk, sending wave after wave, consuming everything. Philippa’s now darkened eyes, were solely focused on Ares who challenged her, not breaking away while his army fled through the portal, passing their god but too afraid to even think about the consequences of desertion.

“Flee…” she said with a distorted voice. “Flee or I will have no mercy for you and your Pantheon.”

A soldier called Ares, panicked. “Call the retreat!” Ares did not listen, still watching Philippa walking towards him, jaw clenched. “My lord please! We will not survive!”

Ares finally called the retreat and slowly walked backwards to the portal. He entered it and while the green light was fading, he said one last thing:

“This was only the beginning. Except thousands more deaths in the future. This time you will not be there to stop it, mark my words.”

And the portal closed.

* * *

Alexander stared at the sleazy man before him. God, he reminded himself. Said god had an enigmatic smile on his face and was playing with a skull while he sat on Alexander’s chair. Which only made the newly appointed Pharaoh more annoyed. But what could he say? He was not in front of one of his general, he was in front of a god, and not any god. Apep, the one the Greeks called Apophis, serpent of chaos.

Alexander cleared his throat. “I did as you said. I am now a Pharaoh; all I must do is defeat the Persians and this country will be mine. I expect you to fulfil your end of the bargain.”

Apep, or Gaunter O’Dimm, as he liked to be called, did not raise his eyes from the skull. Seemingly bored by the ordeal he only hummed.

“Will you speak at all?” Alexander was getting impatient.

A thread of shadow shot up from the ground, encircling his throat, choking him.

“Can’t you see I am busy?” spoke Gaunter. After a moment, he sighed and looked up at the choking Alexander in front of him, an amused expression on his face mixed with disgust at seeing the young man struggling. “You have not yet defeated the Persians and your gods are still standing, so _your_ end of the bargain is not yet fulfilled. Learn your place, mortal.”

He released the Pharaoh, who fell on the ground, coughing. Alexander raised enraged eyes on the god.

“You want me to betray my gods as well?! This was not what we agreed!”

“Oh? Did I not say I wanted to see the gods die? I didn’t only mean the Egyptian ones. But do not worry so much. They will live, for now. I made a pact with Zeus, he will send his forces to annihilate Ra and his pets.” Gaunter coddled the skull in his hands before crushing it, sending fragments of bones inside the tent. “Once they are annihilated, I will make you a god. Not before.”

The serpent god rose from his chair and kneeled beside Alexander who was still laying on the ground. He stared haughtily at him with his eyes as dark as the void itself, terrifying the young Pharaoh. Gaunter saw that, despite Alexander’s best efforts to hide it, and smirked.

“Know that I will not stop before all gods are erased from this world. If I make you a god, you will have to defeat me if you do not want to end up like the rest of them. For now, they foolishly battle amongst themselves and it suits me. But later…” he did not finish his sentence, laughing and disappearing in a mist of shadows, leaving Alexander with his regrets. Why did he ever make this pact?

“Oh, my dear Alexander, before I forget” said the distorted voice from somewhere in the tent. “Do not forget to spread the word about Apep. I want the world to worship me.”

* * *

They held a proper burial, fitting of a god. Regis prepared his body and a shrine was constructed in his honour in the fields of Aaru. Edwige was beyond comfort, crying on what remained of the body of her son and Vizimir who had fought Ares felt as if he had failed his son by letting the god flee. They learned after the battle, that the other realms of the Celestial Plane were also under attack, and that was where the other gods were fighting when Ares killed Horus. No other casualties were accounted in the Ennead, only Radovid died. Even Eredin, who couldn’t get along with the boy to save his life, was upset by his death. Philippa punched Ra when he came back, blaming him for his death, screaming at him for abandoning them. Ra only stared at her with pity in his eyes, enraging even more the lion goddess. He knew she didn’t blame him as much as she blamed herself and let her externalize her pain until Tissaia took her in her arms, trying to calm her down.

Normally, a god couldn’t die, his soul would return in the Duat where he would recover but the blade that Ares’ used was full of pestilence, even that was lethal for a god as strong as Horus. It was the same pestilence and miasma she used, meaning the celestial soldiers who fought her were dead, no hope of returning. Good. That’s what they deserved.

Years passed, the death of Horus still hung heavily on the hearts of the gods, Philippa’s too, even if she did not show it, she still blamed herself. The Greeks took the country, Alexander was proclaimed Pharaoh but died soon after. One of his faithful general, Ptolemy, succeeded him and years later Cleopatra sat on the throne. Temples in honour of the Greek Gods were built, mixing Egyptian and Greek beliefs. Ares’ words were true, it was only the beginning, war raged in the Celestial Plane of Egypt as well as in the one of Greece, each pantheon sending expeditions to the different realms of the other. The Celestial Town where lived the Egyptian Gods, the Golden City, was now in ruins, only the palace, a few hundred meters away, still stood.

Amid all the chaos, Philippa met every few years with Sheala, in the Oasis where they had first met. Remembering one moment in particular, Philippa dodged a sword that came her way, once again in one of the countless battles that took place.

* * *

It was a year after the death of Radovid, Philippa had not met Sheala at all, mourning in her own way: drinking and fucking. One day she decided the return to the little oasis, tired of moping around, and to no surprise, found Sheala speaking with the many animals encircling her. Still full of grief, anger overtook Philippa and she ran, scaring the animals and startling the other woman who was raised off the ground, the lion goddess’ firmly holding her by her tunic. Sheala saw all kinds of emotion pass through the eyes of Philippa: grief, anger, hatred… relief at seeing her again.

“Who are you?! You are Greek are you not? One of those Greek Gods!” her voice shook with rage.

Sheala stayed silent, her eyes focusing on Philippa’s. Then she spoke. “I am.”

She was suddenly let go of, Philippa turning away from her.

“Which one are you?” Philippa whispered, tired. Anger suddenly fading away.

“… Artemis. And you are Sekhmet, yes?”

Philippa nodded still not turning. “How did you know?”

“I heard tales about you, and not everyone can turn into a lioness, you know.” Softly said the huntress, as she would with a scared animal, not to startle it more. 

“Did you know… Did you know about the attack? Ares’ attack?”

Philippa turned her head, staring at the other goddess who shook her head, sorrow passing through her eyes.

“I was not made aware of it, no. Ares tends to act on his own.”

The lion goddess searched for traces of doubts, indicating that Sheala lied, but found none. Philippa took a shaky breath and sat on the grass. Sheala slowly approached her, and hesitantly, kneeled behind her, a hand resting on the shoulder of the woman.

“You lost someone, didn’t you?” Sheala inquired.

“I did, but I wasn’t the only one.”

The Greek goddess sighed. “I am sorry.”

Philippa shook herself out of Sheala’s touch and stood up. “Sorry is not going to bring him back!” watching Sheala’s eyes cast downwards, she calmed down “I apologize. That was uncalled for.”

“It’s fine. You are mourning.”

Philippa scoffed. “I had enough of mourning. A war is coming. Against your pantheon. I came to tell you that we cannot meet again.” Saying those words made Philippa’s heart ache, and Sheala looked up at her, her green eyes shimmering.

“I really wish I met you in another life. A less complicated life.”

A tear escaped the huntress’ eye. “Me too…”

Philippa walked away; her heart heavy and did not look back. 

* * *

But of course, that was a lie. They did meet again, countless times. Neither of them could be apart from the other for a long time, always yearning for more when they were away, and even though Ra forbade her from going again in the Mortal Plane, she always managed to get away. A strange thread linked them, tugging desperately at their hearts when they were not in each other’s presence. Even now on the battlefield, Philippa could feel her heart calling to the other goddess.

As she sends a wave of miasma towards the celestial Greek warriors of Ares, she remembered another one of their many meetings. This one surely the most memorable and intense.

* * *

They were in the oasis, as they always found each other. It was during the fiftieth year of war; a feeble truce had been accepted. They met several times a year even if sometimes it could be years until they saw each other again. Philippa was no longer counting, neither was Sheala, both enjoying each other’s presence, relishing in it before the inevitable separation. A god could spend five hundred years without noticing it for it was only a few years in his life. And yet, a single month without the other became unbearable.

This time Philippa was the first one to arrive, so she sat, waiting for Sheala. She was restless, she had never felt like this around another woman, and yet she felt like a foolish young girl in love when she was around the other goddess. Nothing happened between them during their meetings, except heavy flirting that left both women aroused every time. And Philippa decided she had enough of this sexual tension, tonight was the night, or she would go drown herself. She heard faint steps, steps that a normal human wouldn’t hear, even gods would have trouble noticing it. The huntress was always so light on her feet, but Philippa had the ears of lioness. She turned her head, her eyes widening upon seeing the state the proud goddess Artemis was in.

“Good evening, Phil.” Said the huntress, a smile spreading on her bloodied lips, she was seemingly out of breath and exhausted.

She limped to Philippa, who immediately stood up to catch her before she fell. Sheala latched onto the tunic-clad shoulders of Philippa.

“What happened? Who did this?” asked urgently the lion goddess, anger seeping through her words.

She sat Sheala down near the stream of water and took off her tunic to use it as a washcloth. She saw the cheeks of the huntress redden, trying hard to advert her eyes from the sculpted body of Philippa which made the goddess chuckle.

“You are such a virgin.” She said, forgetting for a moment her anger, soaking her tunic in the water. She brought the wet cloth to scrub the blood off Sheala’s face who winced in pain.

“Shut up…” Mumbled the huntress through her clenched teeth. Philippa could tell she was embarrassed; it was kind of cute. Ha, who was she kidding, it was adorable.

Philippa continued her ministrations, careful not to hurt the other goddess.

“So…”

Sheala was ripped from her trance, tearing her gaze from Philippa’s very… very enticing abs. And other assets.

“Hum…” she cleared her throat. “Yes, sorry. There was a battle, on Mount Olympus.”

Philippa sighed. “I suppose Ra ordered the attack.” She patted the cloth on Sheala’s neck, making her shudder.

“Actually, no. It was Seth.” Years of wars had familiarised the gods with each other, they were all acquainted now. “We were not prepared, we lost…” she choked on her words, her breath catching in her throat. Philippa saw the tears in the huntress’ eyes. She was trying hard not to cry and it did not help when the other goddess caressed her cheek with her hand, looking at her with worry in her eyes. “We lost Apollo.”

Philippa groaned. “Fuck…”

Immediately, the lioness took the weeping goddess in her arms. Sheala cried in the neck of her friend, who held her more tightly, murmuring words of comfort. Even though the circumstances did not quite call for the moment, it was so good to have Sheala pressed against her again. _The woman just lost her brother and all you can think about is sex, fucking dog._

Sheala slowly separated herself from the other woman and took her face between her hands, resting her forehead against Philippa’s, closing her eyes.

“Kiss me…” she said in a breath.

Philippa gulped. Their lips were already so close, she could kiss her, right now. But she hesitated. _Now you hesitate?!_

“You’re grieving She-”

The hands of Sheala latched more desperately against her cheeks, bringing her closer, her breath falling on the lips of the Egyptian goddess.

“Please, I do not know if I will see you again, I do not know if the next battle will take my life or yours. What if we end up fighting each other? What then? I do not want to go without tasting your lips, without knowing the feeling of your naked body against mine. I am so tired of this war; all I want is you.” Sheala’s tears wouldn’t stop, she had wanted it so badly for so long she couldn’t pretend anymore.

Philippa nodded, her breath short. Not waiting a moment longer, she pressed her lips against the other goddess’, who moaned at the feeling. It started sweet and slow, rapidly turning into something rawer and more passionate. Philippa passed her tongue against Sheala’s lips who greedily opened them, tasting at long last the lion goddess. They continued kissing, tongues battling for dominance as Philippa tore the tunic of the huntress, gaining access to her soft skin.

Her hands went against Sheala’s breasts, palming them softly as the Greek woman broke the kiss to breath, her moans disturbing the peaceful silent of the night. Philippa laid Sheala down on the ground, positioning herself on top of her only stopping to admire the naked goddess underneath. She slowly caressed her abdomen, taking in the magnificence of this woman who had changed her life.

“By the Sun… You are magnificent.” She murmured and was tugged down by a hand latching at her neck.

“Take me. Make me yours, I cannot wait any longer.” Sheala’s breath was coming in short huffs.

Philippa answered with a cheeky smile. “Aren’t you going to beg?” she pouted.

Sheala tugged at her hair, making her groan. The green-eyed goddess stared at her very soul, fire in her eyes.

“Shut up and fuck me.”

Philippa complied, how could she not? Every cell of her body was calling to the Greek goddess. And so, they abandoned themselves to each other, body and soul, not knowing if it was their last night together. They alternated between fucking like animals and making sweet love. They no longer gave a damn about what happened to the world because in this moment they were together, complete, sealing the bound, sealing the prophecy Thoth had said at the Assembly, neither of them knowing that there was one to begin with.

* * *

It was not the last night. No, they had met again, and again, and again. Each time making love to each other until morning came, whispering promises of love and future. This made the arrow that flew right in her chest more painful than it would have been normally. She stopped her rampage, adrenaline coursing through her veins and looked down in shock at the arrow lodged in her heart. Philippa could take a thousand arrows without falling, she could fight for hundreds of years without tiring. But this was no natural arrow, this was an arrow imbued with celestial power and… something else, something unknown. She watched as her blood spilled on her golden armour and she pressed her hand around the arrow.

“What…”

The battle was still raging and wasn’t stopping anytime soon, soldiers were fighting in a mass of sweaty and bloody bodies, not caring for who fell. But she couldn’t hear them, all she could hear was the faint beat of her heart slowly fading away and her shaky breathing. All she could feel was the blood in her mouth, the pain of the celestial arrow pouring through her heart and veins. Her legs felt suddenly heavy, her arms no longer able to hold her flaming khopesh that fell to the ground, clattering against the earth. She finally looked up to see who had shot her, foolishly hoping it was not who she thought. But it was. Her eyes met the green ones of Sheala, a hundred feet from her.

“No…” she coughed up blood and fell to her knees.

No pain could compare to what she felt at this moment. She could see the anguish in her lover’s eyes, but all she could feel was unaltered hatred.

“Traitor…” was all she could muster before her eyes closed, the last thing she saw being Sheala’s back as she fled the battlefield.

* * *

Gaunter found himself seated in a royal chair, not unlike Alexander’. A sly laugh escaped his throat. Ah, Alexander, the fool died before he could meet the end of his bargain. That of course, Gaunter knew, he knew that in a lifetime Alexander could not accomplish what he signed for and in the end, he died alone, depressed in his bed, never attaining the divinity he sought. How utterly stupid and vain those humans were. He simply loved it. He sipped the roman wine from the cup he had in hand, relishing in the fact that Sekhmet would die today. She had always been a pain in the ass.

Apep was everywhere, he was the doubts in the minds of men and gods alike, the hatred in their hearts. And so, a day before, he whispered in Zeus’ ear, for him to give a mission to his precious daughter Artemis: that of killing the most dangerous goddess. Zeus listened to what he thought was his mind and he sent Artemis on her mission, missing the shock and despair in her eyes. Oh, but Gaunter knew the little bitch would do anything to save her lover. She was smart, she knew that the heart was the soul and he knew she would imbue one of her arrows with celestial power, ensuring the goddess was safe in the Duat while recovering for her return. But Gaunter was always two steps ahead, so he went, later that day, in the small clearing where Artemis spends her day when away from Sekhmet. He slithered on the ground as a small snake and went for her arrows. He went for the celestial imbued one and with a flick of his tongue, cursed it so that Sekhmet will never return to her pantheon.

Gaunter laughed again, it had been so easy. Now, the lovers would never fulfil the prophecy. Even though the two goddesses sealed their bonds, the death of one of them will make sure his plans would not fail. He even made sure the rest of the world knew about him through Alexander, and it worked: he had another puppet dancing in the palm of his hand.

Speaking of said puppet, Gaunter stared at the young man, the infamous Emperor of Rome in all his glory, armour shining, red mantel perfectly seated on his shoulders. Gaius Octavius Thurinus, known as Augustus.

“I heard you wanted to make a bargain, mortal.”

The proud emperor gazed at him with disdain. Heh, he will learn soon enough what making a bargain with Apep entailed and he will learn respect.

“Yes. That is why I summoned you.”

Summoned him? Oh, he was going to have fun with this one.

“Speak then, _small emperor._ ” Gaunter mocked him but Augustus did not give him the pleasure of reacting. How boring. Alexander was much more hot-blooded.

“I heard the tales of how you aided Alexander the Great in his conquest. I wish to ask you for the same.”

“Do you not have an army for that?”

“Yes, and it is very useful, but I wish to go abroad. In the land of Egypt. I want to make sure my army withstand the clash against Cleopatra and Marc Anthony.”

Perfect. Exquisite. Beat down the gods who were already crawling on the ground.

“Is that all you wish from me?”

“I want you to make me a god. I am an Emperor, the people deserve a god to rule them. I heard you could do that.”

This time Gaunter laughed out loud, a dark mocking laugh. Another one, those humans were so pretentious, so arrogant. What was it with them and being a god? Did thinking of themselves as gods made their cock hard?

“You’re just like him.” He rose from the chair, weeping a tear from his eye. “Alright, but I need something in return I hope you knew that when you called me.”

Augustus nodded. “Of course, a bargain always works in two ways.”

“Indeed, it does. Once you conquer Egypt, I want you to replace the Egyptian and Greek gods with your gods, destroy their temple, destroy the faith of the people.”

Gaunter did not know much about roman gods, except that they were pale copies of the Greek ones. But it’ll have to do.

The Emperor raised a blond eyebrow. “Only that?”

“Yes, only that.” The God had a mean smirk on his lips, making Augustus uncomfortable.

Gaunter’s plan was to destroy the gods after all, one by one, even if it took centuries, he would do it. And how do you destroy a god? By shredding the faith people had in him to pieces. Augustus raised his right hand and Gaunter looked at it, confused.

“Agreed, then.” Said the young Emperor.

Ah yes, that was how mortals concluded a bargain. Gaunter shook the Emperor’s hand, enjoying that once again, the world would fall deeper in darkness.

* * *

When Philippa opened her eyes, all she could see was water and darkness, the only light being the golden aura of her soul. In fact, she was laying on a hard surface, hard and wet with a slight layer of water. She looked around but all she could see was an endless void. From far away, she could hear the screams of soul being ripped apart again and again, no doubt by demons.

For she was in the Duat. In Ammit’s domain, the devourer of the dead.

“Ah, the great Sekhmet wakes at last.” A chilling voice said, somewhere in the darkness.

Philippa stood up on shaky legs, her body covered in a white dress that replaced her golden armour.

“Welcome, welcome!” the feminine voice screamed in joy.

Philippa gritted her teeth. “Ammit.”

She could hear scales moving, making the water disperse but still couldn’t see the demon in charge of this part of the Underworld.

“What am I doing here? I’m supposed to be resting so that I can go back to my body.”

A sly chuckle met her ears.

“Oh no, not this time my dear.”

Philippa froze. What did she mean?

“I see you are confused. The arrow you were hit with…” Sheala’s arrow, the woman she thought loved her, the woman she loved. The betrayer. “Yes, the woman you loved. Love is such a fickle thing, so very fragile. She said she loved you, no? And look how that turned out. Her, shooting you, with an arrow imbued with celestial power. But you already knew that.”

“Indeed.” Spat Philippa “So why don’t you tell me what I don’t know? I am getting tired of this conversation.”

“Now now” admonished the demon. “Don’t be so hasty, we will spend a lot of time together. I’ve always wanted a goddess to play with, this place can get boring after ten thousand years you know.”

“I doubt we will have much to discuss, I will soon return to the Golden City.”

This time it was a full-blown laugh that resonated in the endless void place, making the water ripple.

“I didn’t know the cunning lioness was so naïve. The arrow was not only imbued with celestial power. It had a curse on it, a curse that binds you here. How the little goddess knew how to cast it, I don’t know and don’t care. She gave me a wonderful gift today.” Ammit was ecstatic.

Philippa’s eyes widened. No. No, not that. The betrayal sank deeper, making it hard to breath. Why would Sheala do that? Why would she betray her like that?

“Yeeeeeeees.” A sadistic laugh made the goddess’ ears ring. “It means I own you, Sekhmet. You are mine now, never to return. The world lost Horus, and now it lost its greatest warrior! How dramatic, how entertaining!”

She couldn’t stop the tears from falling, clutching her chest. It was too much, an arrow to the heart by her beloved, and now her soul was bound to Ammit. This was a nightmare; it could only be a nightmare. Philippa’s all world was crumbling around her. Everything was a lie, all Artemis said to her was lies, and like a stupid fool she believed it. She opened up to someone and that was how the world rewarded her, that was how the woman she gave everything rewarded her. With lies and betrayal. Hatred and despair battled in the heart of the lion-goddess, eating at her soul.

A whisper right next to her ear. “Looking forward to torturing your soul, my dear. But I see the work of it has already begun. We will have so much fun, you and me.”

Philippa barely reacted as her whole soul shook with anger, the golden aura shimmering. Ares’ words resonated in her mind. _This time you will not be there to stop it, mark my words._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Khopesh : The khopesh is an Egyptian sickle-sword that evolved from battle axes. A typical khopesh is 50–60 cm in length, though smaller examples also exist. The inside curve of the weapon could be used to trap an opponent's arm, or to pull an opponent's shield out of the way. 
> 
> Heka Sceptre : One of Osiris and the Pharaoh's symbol. I used it as one of the weapon for Osiris. 
> 
> I separated the celestial plane in three parts: the Duat, the fields of Aaru (Osiris' domain and where the dead go) and the Golden City, this one I invented, it is where the gods are staying. 
> 
> People used to pray to Sekhmet so that she was calmed down and did not sent disease and miasma on the Earth, hence the fact that Philippa went berserk with her pestilence. 
> 
> Anyway, I wanted to do a smut for Philippa and Sheala but since it was in flashback I preferred to wait for when they'll be together again. So you can wait, a long time, I'm so sorry lmao 
> 
> Also, in egyptian mythology Isis is Osiris, Seth and Nephthys' sister but since I'm not doing the original family tree, I made Isis (Yennefer) and Sekhmet (Philippa) sisters since it suited the story better
> 
> Thank you for reading, see in a week people!


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